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SteveG.

Posts: 16
Joined: Apr 2006

May 01, 2006 - 4:25 am

The surgery was Monday, 4/24. and al seemed to go pretty well. Overall, I was in ICU for 5 days, but only on the main floor for one. For the most part, the caregivers were fantastic (there's always one, it seems, who is just having a rough day, or something, and you get to be the victim of that). They took the whole URL, and did a wedge resection on the lower as well. Pathology shows there may have been some blood vessel involvement, so I will be having chemo as well, detail not yet known. Recovering from the surgery was hell, I never want to go through that again. I was in pretty severe pain most of the time, but with each tube that was taken out (catheter, two chest tubes, two A-lines, it became easier to bear. Never was able to get more than an hours sleep at a time, which didn't help. But that is all past, and I'm home, which helps amazingly. I cannot believe how great my wife Linda has been through this! She's a far stronger woman than I knew, and she's certainly got the "for better or worse" part down to a T! Work has great too! I'll be moving to a lighter duty area (work at Barnes & Noble, currenty the bargain lead, but will become the Music & DVD lead on return) Thanks, especially to all you guys! Your support was just something else for me to cling to! Oh.. the offficial staging was IIB, when I see My GP, I'm going to shower her with love for ordering that simple chest x-ray!

If there is anything I can do to help anyone, at anytime, let Me know.. PLEASE!!!

That's great news, Steve. Of course, there were a few things we couldn't tell you about the surgery, going in, but you obviously handled it quite well. So nice to hear, also, all the credit that you give to your wife. Sometimes spouses don't get the credit they deserve. Post-op chemo didn't beat me up at all, and I think that it's a good insurance policy. It's all better from here on. Breathing exercises, walking and eating well are important now. Get well soon. Keep us posted. Ernie

Glad to hear things are going well. I too had post op chemo. Gemzar was the brand and it was not a big deal at all. I am a IIIB right pneumonectomy survivor. I went through a pulmonary rehabilitation program after surgery that really helped me get back on my feet. I continue to go to a "maintenance" program twice a week even though it's been over 3 years and I'm somewhat normal. It's just good to be around people going through similar circumstances and the staff listens to my lung and takes my vitals regularly. It kind of helps with the "recurrance" worry factor. Best of luck for a speedy recovery.

Steve,
So very glad to hear that your surgery went so well. Be sure to continue to drink lots of water be kind to yourself. At first I wanted to get well so fast that I pushed myself too hard. The body will rebel and give you a hard pain which is its way of saying "take it easy, I have not healed yet". Your wife truly sounds like an angel.
Take care and God Bless.
Carol

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